Schedule
by Billy Stubbs
Summary: Molly Weasley begins to notice how one of her sons, a particular well-known prankster, always goes missing during their mandatory weekly family dinners. A dark and sad Mother's Day fic written in tribute about one of the greatest fictional mothers of our time and the pains that mothers go through. Dark, you have been warned. Oneshot


**A/N: Happy Mother's Day to wherever you are! I've decided to do another one-shot following my Snape fic and this time, I choose to focus on one of the greatest fictional mothers of all time, Molly Weasley. While I've read countless stories of the Golden Trio, together with Ginny, George, Neville etc. all coping in the aftermath of the war, there are a few that focus on Molly and even fewer that are Molly-centric.**

 **So, this is my story focusing on Molly and I should warn here that the story will get dark soon enough. This isn't a happy story so if you're looking for one with happiness and fluff, then look away. If not, please read this. To my readers, do check out my other stories and as for my big one, BIWDT, I promise to get back to it next week. Until then, take care and enjoy my second one-shot.**

 **THANK YOU FOR READING! And once again, please feel free to leave a review if you like or give me feedback if you want to. Thank you so much!**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own HP because if I did, Fred would still be alive…**

" _A mother's love for her child is like nothing else in the world. It knows no law, no pity. It dares all things and crushes down remorselessly all that stands in its path"_

 _Agatha Christie_

 **SCHEDULE**

If there was one colour Molly had started to dislike, it was the colour white. Not that there was anything wrong with the colour of course. White always seemed too bright for her. Whenever she would stare at something white, like the colour of a brand-new plate, Molly could not help but feel the colour blinding her, as if preventing her from seeing what she wanted to see. Lately, the reason the colour white bothered her was due to the fact she associated it with the room she was now sitting in.

Molly was in an examination room at St Mungo's where she had to attend her monthly visit to a Healer. It was mandatory according to Kingsley Shacklebolt, who was now Minister for Magic, that all war heroes involved in the Battle of Hogwarts had to see a Healer in order to assess their psychological and emotional state. _Only for a year,_ she recalled her husband telling her as Arthur tried to reassure her while they were in bed last night. _Bollocks!_ Molly thought as she tried to convince her husband that she was fine since all their children were safe. Only Arthur's argument that if she refused to attend her Healer meetings, her children might do the same had won her over. No doubt, all of her children especially Ronald who had been involved the most as he had left with Harry and Hermione to defeat Voldemort needed this and as a mother, she had to set a good example. _Doesn't mean I have to be happy about it_ thought Mrs. Weasley grumpily as a young, female Healer entered the room and gave her a warm smile.

"Ahh, Mrs. Weasley. Right on schedule," said Amanda Pepper, a young and beautiful female Healer with locks so bushy, they could give Hermione a run for her money.

"Let's get it over with," Molly replied as she glanced around the room in disgust. The walls were white, the floor was white, the table was white and even Amanda herself was cloaked in her snow-colored coat. Only the red pen and the brown clipboard in Amanda's hand clashed with the aesthetics of the room. That and Molly's own wardrobe where she wore black robes and bright blue shoes, a monthly act of defiance against the white that wanted to consume her.

"So Mrs. Weasley…"

"Please, dear. Call me Molly."

"Right," Amanda said as she gave Molly an apologetic smile. "So, Molly, how are you feeling?"

"I'm feeling fine, dear. So fine, in fact, that I believe that our meetings, as interesting as they are, are no longer needed. Not that you're not good at your dear," Molly said hastily as she didn't want to offend the young healer. "You are perhaps the only good reason for me coming here. Now didn't you say you were single, Amanda? Because I do have a son, Charlie, who would be more than willing to…"

"I'm spoken for, Molly," Amanda said with a light chuckle as Mrs. Weasley pouted her face. "But thank you for that lovely compliment."

"Well, I suppose I should tell you about how things have been going for me…" Mrs. Weasley said with a sigh. Molly had realised many meetings ago that the less she spoke, the longer and more drawn out these meeting had started to become. To combat this, Molly had decided to spend much of the meetings telling Amanda about her daily life and sometimes, even gossiping about others like that strange Andromeda Tonks who she had gotten close to and always had a sort of sad expression on her face every time Molly spoke to her about her children. In the past, Molly would have questioned further but knowing that Andromeda had lost her daughter and son-in-law in the war, Molly never brought it up out of respect. She could not imagine what it would be like to lose a child. Or Harry, Hermione, Fleur, and Angelina for that matter. They were all her children and Molly loved them with all her heart.

Yet today, Molly felt her heart lightened as she did have something to talk to Amanda about. Lately, Molly had noticed that one of her children, Fred, was constantly missing from their weekly Sunday dinners. After the war, Molly had noticed how each of her children were setting out on their own, even Ginny, who had decided to return to Hogwarts with Hermione. Naturally, Molly had made a decree that each Sunday would be family time and barring anything important, all members of the family had to be present. She had begged Minerva and Kingsley to allow her children to return on weekends and she was surprised to see how readily the two individuals gave in to her. Almost as if they felt sorry for her.

"I've been noticing that my son Fred is currently missing whenever we have our weekly dinners," Molly said as Amanda furrowed her eyebrows and wrote something down on the clipboard.

"Does he always go missing or does Fred not attend the dinners?"

"That's the thing. Unless Arthur tells me otherwise, everyone has to attend the dinners. I usually wait for all of them to arrive. First to come would be Bill and his family, followed by Percy and Charlie though we haven't always had a full house mind you, as these three are constantly very busy with their jobs. Then comes Ron and Ginny, with Hermione and Harry in tow followed by the twins with either Angelina or Lee or sometimes both. Only when I'm satisfied that the entire family is seated in the kitchen, that we begin dinner."

"So, you notice Fred come in, then?"

"I must have, don't I?" Molly said as she scratched her head. "Unless of course, I'm just imagining things."

"Well, sometimes the mind plays tricks on us. Makes us see things that aren't really there. Interesting fact to note, Mrs. Weasley, that our minds are often designed to protect us from – "

"Yes, yes," Molly said impatiently as she wished to continue her story. "You've been telling me that for about a year now. But let me tell you what happened first. It was after our last meeting, you recall, when we had our weekly family dinner…" Molly said as she frowned hard to recall the memory.

….

"Arthur, what happened to my clock?" Molly screeched as she pointed to a bare spot on the wall of her kitchen. Arthur gave her a sheepish grin as he shrugged his shoulders.

"I dropped it while I was cleaning the kitchen. It broke so I threw it out." Arthur said with a pleading look in his eyes. However, Molly narrowed hers instead as she glared at her husband.

"A likely story! That clock has been in this family for years and I placed an Unbreakable Charm on it. Stop covering up for the children, Arthur. Now tell me who did it?" Molly said as she kept her glare on her husband.

"Surely there is a better time to discuss this," Arthur whispered loudly as he nudged Molly to the scene before them. The Weasleys were throwing their weekly Sunday family dinner and the raucous nature of the Weasley gathering meant that no one had paid any attention to the exchange between Molly and Arthur. Bill was busy tending to Fleur and his baby, who had started to cry loudly. Percy was discussing Ministry matters out loud to Harry who pretended to listen to him by nodding slowly. George was explaining the latest Weasleys' Wizard's Wheezes product to Ginny in such a dramatic manner that pieces of treacle tart were flying off his spoon and at the end of the table, Ron and Hermione were bickering loudly about something at Hogwarts. Charlie hadn't been able to attend as he had to stay in Romania for the arrival of a new dragon. And Fred…

 _Wait, where is Fred?_ Mrs. Weasley thought as she started to fume. Didn't she say that these dinners were compulsory for all members of the family to attend barring an important emergency and that anyone who cannot attend must inform in advance? She didn't recall Arthur saying that Fred was not able to make it. Feeling her anger rise again, Mrs. Weasley turned her attention to George.

"George, where is Fred?!" Mrs. Weasley roared out loud.

It was as if the entire kitchen had turned into a library. Only the sound of a spoon clattering onto the floor and Victoire's crying could be heard as Molly was taken aback by the silence that had intruded into their dinner. She could see everyone staring at her and each other with wary faces. Before she could speak to ask what was wrong, George gave her a curious grin as he nodded.

"He's upstairs sleeping, the prat! I'll go call him to come down."

George took off without even a glance as he ran out of the kitchen. Molly turned her attention to her family, all of whom seemed to be giving her strange glances before Arthur gave a loud burp. Turning to chastise her husband, Molly notice out of the corner of her eye how each member of her family started giving nudges to one another as they continued their conversation even though it seemed a little more muted than before.

"Honestly, Arthur, do that quietly, will you?" Molly said as she continued to gaze at her family. Arthur started to blush as he opened his mouth to speak but Molly was no longer paying attention. Something strange was going on here and she intended to find out what was happening.

"Does anyone know why Fred is sleeping?!" Molly roared again although her question was directed to no one in particular. This time, however, Ron spoke out without missing a beat.

"That's because he spends all night working on his product, Mum!"

"Well then, he can sleep after dinner! This is family time!" Molly cried.

"He went upstairs to finish his product, Mum," Ginny said, taking over from her brother. "I bet the prat just fell asleep!"

"I'm here! Why did you folks miss me or something?"

Everyone turned to see a five foot nine, freckled male redhead with cheeky grin and piercing almond eyes walk in as Fred started to rub his left ear as if trying to scratch some imaginary itch.

"Honestly, Fred! How can you be sleeping? You should be spending time with your family!" Molly cried out loud as she wagged a finger in his direction. Fred, however, merely walked to the table to grab a chicken leg which he then started to eat hungrily.

"Relax mum, it was only a nap."

"I will do no such thing, Fred Weasley," Molly said, refusing to back down. "You will sit right here and finish eating with your family. Don't go off somewhere and give your mother a scare like that."

"But I've already eaten, Mum!" Fred whined out loud as Molly narrowed her eyes. Before she could retort, Molly noticed yet another conspicuous absence.

"And where is George, now?" Molly roared again, this time however with less anger and more frustration. "Honestly, you two used to be tied to the hip and now I keep seeing one without the other?"

"George is in the loo, Mum," Fred said as he gave her a sheepish grin. "I accidentally spilled some of our latest product on him and he's washing up as we speak."

"Well then, we'll just wait for him to return, shall we?"

"Mum, can I go back to my room? There's a huge mess that I have to clean up." Fred said as he eyed his mother warily. "You said that I could be excused, remember?"

"Yes, dear, you did," Arthur interjected as Molly turned to stare at her husband. _Did she?_ Molly thought furiously, trying to recall if she gave Fred permission to leave the table. Her mind had not been as strong as of late although Molly attributed it to the war and her old age. Staring at her husband who had been staring worriedly at her, Molly softened her expression. Lately, she noticed how Arthur had been so stressed worrying not only about their children but her as well and Molly would be damned if she allowed herself to be a burden on her poor husband's shoulders. Besides, Molly trusted her husband. Giving Arthur a warm smile and Fred a stern nod, Fred hugged his mother tightly before making a beeline towards the door. Before he could exit the room, however, Molly called out to him again.

"By the way, Fred, do you know anything of what happened to my clock? Did you and George do something?" Molly said, being careful that her tone didn't sound too accusatory.

Fred turned to face her as he fidgeted with his left ear again. "It's not me or George, Mum. Definitely, Ginny's work if you ask me."

"Excuse me!" Ginny cried in indignation as she glared at her brother. "It's more likely to be Ron!"

"HEY!" Ron roared as he stood to face his sister. "Probably Percy, the git!"

"Excuse me, Ronald, but I do not appreciate you accusing me of such things," Percy replied in a curt tone before grinning. "If anything, it must be Bill."

"Nope, Harry," Bill said as he grinned at Harry who stared at him in shock.

"Yup, definitely Harry!"

"Harry!"

"Who else but Harry!" cried everyone as Harry paled at the thought of Mrs. Weasley scolding him only for Ron to nudge him hard. "Relax, Harry. You're the Boy Who Lived! What's the worst that could happen?"

The table broke into laughter as accusations continued to fly and the noisy and lively chatter of the Weasley clan continued. Infected by the dramatic nature of her children, Molly found herself infected by the laughter as she failed miserably to suppress her giggles. As the dinner started to come alive again, everyone went berserk when a certain George Weasley entered the kitchen and started shushing everyone which led to a food fight with dinner rolls thrown all around.

…..

"I see," Amanda said as Molly finished her flashback. "So, you noticed that your son, Fred, has been missing from dinner and you had quite a reaction to it, from what you just told me."

"Yes." Molly sighed as she started to fidget in her seat. Molly had taken to staring at the brown clipboard that Amanda was scribbling furiously on with her pen. It wasn't so much that Molly was interested in what Amanda was writing but rather because the dullness of the brown-coloured clipboard had provided a welcome distraction to the blinding whiteness of the room.

"Tell me about your son, Molly. Tell me about Fred. What was he like?"

"You mean, before the war?"

"Yes. Of course." Amanda said hastily as her eyes began to widen. "Before the war."

"He's a prankster just like his twin. They were both so very mischievous and would always get into trouble no matter how much trouble tried to avoid them." Molly said with a happy thought at all the shenanigans the twins used to pull. "They never liked authority and I daresay the only authority they ever respected was mine and Arthur's. But they were both so smart and even though I said it to Fred a couple of times, I'm always very proud of them and what they achieved especially with that ridiculous joke shop of theirs. How they got the money to set it up, I'll never know."

"Fred sounds like an amazing guy."

"He was," Molly said as she sighed. She noticed Amanda was tilting her head as if she was trying to make sense of something. "Before the battle, they were both so full of life. But now, Fred has quietened down a bit. Much like George."

Molly noticed Amanda letting out a sad sigh before allowing a sympathetic smile to break out from her face. Amanda did do that from time to time. Whenever Molly would speak, there would be times when Amanda would lean forward, as if expecting her to say or realise something only to lean back into her seat with slight frustration. _Curious_ Molly thought as she continued to size up her Healer.

"Molly, I'm going to ask you a personal question and I want you to understand that you are entirely within your own right to refuse to answer."

"Yes?"

"Could you tell me again about what happened to Fred during the battle?"

Molly smiled not out of happiness but rather at the comfort she felt being able to answer that question easily. Most of Amanda's questions in the past had often made Molly feel weak as she tried to rattle her brain to recall her memories. The war, as well as the ravages of time, had taken its toll on Molly's mind and she was determined to get better if not for her, then for the sake of Arthur and her family. While recalling what happened to Fred had given her nightmares before, if she was being honest, it was, however, the easiest memory for her to recall. A perfect picture film of what she had experienced during the Battle of Hogwarts.

" _Take him to the passage, dear," Molly said as she dabbed some Essence of Dittany onto a seventh-year Hufflepuff boy whose arms had been bleeding profusely. A girl, presumably his girlfriend, had been crying by his side. Voldemort had ordered a ceasefire and the wounded were now given a chance to be tended to. As Molly stared at the couple who were leaving Hogwarts, she could not help but feel concerned as the couple reminded her of her youngest son with Hermione Granger. Before she had time to delve onto her thoughts, she felt a familiar warm hand on her shoulder as she was pulled into a hug._

" _Arthur," Molly said as she felt her husband engulf her in the tightest embrace they ever had in thirty years of marriage. Allowing herself to be comforted by the familiar curves of her husband's body, Molly allowed herself a few moments of comfort before her motherly instincts kicked in._

" _Arthur," Molly said as she pulled herself off her husband. "How are the others? Ron? Ginny? Fred and George? Percy? Charlie? Bill?" Molly said as she rattled out her children's names one by one._

" _Molly, I'm so sorry. I'm so, so sorry." Arthur wept as for the first time, Molly saw the redness in his eyes._

" _What happened, Arthur?!" Molly screeched as panic started to set in._

" _Ron and Ginny are accounted for. So too are Bill, Charlie, Percy, and George." Arthur said hastily even though Molly suspected that he could not possibly know about everyone. But Molly was only interested in the one name that Arthur had deliberately left out._

" _Fred?" Molly croaked as she stared into her husband's blue eyes. Arthur said nothing as he stepped aside from her, allowing Molly to see what he had been covering from her sight._

 _There on the ground, Molly saw a weeping George as he was hugged tightly by a crying Percy. Yet it was what they were crying over that terrified Molly to her core. In front of them, laid a body covered by a bright, cream-coloured sheet with strands of crimson hair jutting out from its side._

 _Molly collapsed on her knees as she crawled towards the body. Lifting the sheet off the body, Molly felt a lump in her throat as her eyes fell upon the pale face of Fred Weasley smiling widely, his mouth contorted into some oddly shaped grin. Molly could feel the tears running freely down her face as she brought out her hand, which was badly shaking, to touch his face. She needed to know that it was real, feel that it was real. That her son was dead and was not coming back. As soon as her finger graze upon his cheek, Molly retracted it back as quickly as she could._

" _He feels as cold as ice. Or freshly fallen snow." Molly thought furiously as the shock of discovering her son dead was starting to wear off. Then she felt it. Large pangs of pain shooting everywhere throughout the body as her mind started to contemplate what she had just seen and felt. As her body started to shudder and shake, Molly retreated into the arms of her husband who was now sitting next to her as she cried her lungs out, allowing herself to be overwhelmed by a pain, unlike anything she had ever known. As the lack of oxygen from being buried in her husband's chest became an issue, Molly turned herself back to face her late son, determined to allow the pain and guilt to hit her over and over again as punishment for her failure._

" _I should have protected you, my dear sweet baby boy." Molly thought viciously as her pain and guilt started to consume her. It was then that Molly noticed something strange as she stared at Fred's mouth._

 _His mouth was twitching._

" _No, it can't be!"_

 _But it is!_

 _Fred's mouth was twitching!_

 _At first, Molly thought she was seeing things but as she shut her eyes and opened it once more, she could clearly see her son's mouth twitching as colour started to return to his cheeks. Fred's cheeks were starting to looked a little flushed as his face looked rosier by the minute. Soon, Molly heard it. A soft chuckle that soon became a laugh that got louder and louder until she could see Fred laughing heartily at her. Looking up towards Percy and George, she was shocked to see that the pair of them had not been crying but rather had been in tears due to excessive laughter._

" _April Fool's Mom!" Fred cried as he composed himself while giving her one of his famous Weasley grins._

 _Molly gaped at her son as she was at a loss for words but Fred continued to speak._

" _Yes, I know. I know. It's May but I figured you would be expecting a prank on April Fool's day Mum seeing as how we loved that day not only because it's our birthday but because we love pulling pranks on people! Since you probably suspected that I would do such a thing, I devised a plan to prank you when you least suspect it."_

" _But…but…Fred?"_

" _So how did I do, Mom? Did you really believe I was dead? Did you miss me? Say, do you think I can get that new Firebolt now? I know, I know you always said over your dead body but does mine count?" Fred had rambled on as he laid on the ground smirking at her while refusing to sit up._

" _FRED WEASLEY!" Molly yelled as she started to land some hard hits on his chest. "HOW DARE YOU PLAY SUCH A CRUEL PRANK ON YOUR MOTHER? DON'T YOU KNOW HOW TERRIFIED I WAS? YOU NEARLY STOPPED MY HEART, YOU CRUEL, HEARTLESS BOY!" Molly continued to scream as she continued to pound on Fred. "AND YOU TWO!" Molly yelled as she glared at George and Percy. "WERE YOU IN ON THIS AS WELL?"_

" _Mom…" George said weakly while Molly continued to glare at her sons whose unusual looks that they gave her, she interpreted as expressions of remorse. Turning her attention back to Fred, she could see his eyes widened as he realized how angry she was. Molly felt herself being drawn into Fred's eyes, not to his brown pupils but rather to his sclera…_

" _Mom, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to scare you." Fred whimpered as Molly could see how sorry her son was with tears trickling around his face. Molly cupped her hands onto his cheeks as she planted a kiss on Fred's forehead. It was good that she felt angry and not in pain. After all, Molly realized how badly she had been wishing it was all a dream, just some cruel prank that Fate had decided to play on her and now that she had the confirmation in her hands, Molly couldn't help but feel relieved._

" _Mom, it was only a prank."_

" _Well, it wasn't funny, Freddie. You nearly scared me to death."_

" _I'm sorry, Mom," Fred said and for some reason, Molly pictured a five-year-old Fred crying and looking very sorrowful as she reprimanded him for turning Ron's bear into a spider._

" _It's okay, dear. Just don't ever scare me like that again."_

" _I promise, Mom. I will never do it again." Fred said as Molly kissed him again on his forehead._

" _Mom?"_

" _Yes, dear?"_

" _I love you."_

" _I love you so much, my precious little boy." Molly cried as she swooped down to kiss him once more._

…..

"Can you believe my son?" Molly said as she laughed at the memory while shaking her head. "Scaring his mother like that."

"I see," Amanda said with a tone that Molly found slightly uncomfortable. Molly stared at Amanda whose green eyes looked red as if she had been crying. Feeling a rush of concern for her Healer, Molly placed her hand on top of Amanda's.

"Are you all right, my dear?" Molly said in a warm voice as Amanda meekly nodded her head in response. Taking a few moments to compose herself, Amanda straightened her robes as she continued to write on her clipboard.

"Sorry, Molly. It's just your story is indeed…very emotional" Amanda said as she chose her words carefully. "You're a really wonderful mother, Molly if I may say so myself."

"You're too kind, Amanda. I'm sure I'm not as wonderful as your own mother."

"I didn't know my mother. She died soon after I was born."

"I'm so sorry, my dear," Molly said as Amanda politely waved her off. Even though she was not obligated to know about her healer and that it was Amanda's job to assess Molly and not the other way around, Molly still felt bad that she never bothered to know more about her healer. And to think she had been spouting stories about family to a woman who had lost her mother! All thoughts of Fred and her family flew out from her mind as Molly felt ashamed at revealing her stories to her Healer. Fortunately, Molly had another flashback to reveal as she relished anything that would get her away from this awkward silence between healer and patient.

"So back to my weekly dinners and me noticing about Fred. See, the same thing happened three weeks ago.

…

"So, Hermione, how are things between you and my son?" Molly asked as she gave Hermione a knowing wink. Hermione blushed furiously at Molly's question as she gave the matriarch of the Weasley family a nervous grin.

"Things are going great! Ron has been very sweet and I love him, Mrs. Weasley." Hermione said hurriedly.

"Please, dear. How many times have I asked you to call me Molly? Soon, you might be calling me mother." Molly chuckled as she winked at Hermione again causing the bushy-haired girl to grow even more scarlet.

"So, Ron is with your dad?" Molly asked as Hermione looked relieved to be given a break from Molly's teasing.

"Yes, my dad insisted on spending some quality time with him. I wanted to volunteer to come along but my dad says it's just for him to get to know Ron better." Hermione said with a hint of concern for her boyfriend's well-being.

"Well, not to worry dear, if I know my Ronald, he will be a perfect gentleman. Unlike George or Fred…" Molly said as her voice trailed off while she assessed the sight of her family dinner before her. She could see each member of her family engaged including George who seemed to be deep in conversation with his father. Once again, Fred Weasley was missing and Molly felt the similar urge of emotions she experienced last week.

"Where is Fred?" Molly roared once again as once again, she was met with initial silence before Charlie broke it.

"He's upstairs, Mother. Remember he wasn't feeling very well and you excused him to go to bed."

"I did?" Molly said out loud as she pondered about what Charlie had told her. She was starting to get annoyed at herself, particularly at her memory whose failure was becoming more common as of late. Not wanting to give herself away to Arthur once again, Molly stood up as she grabbed a plate of food.

"I should go check to see if he's alright," Molly said as she stood up only to be met by George standing in her way.

"I'll go pass this to him, Mom," George said as he tried to take the plate away only for Molly to pull it from his grasp.

"That's very nice of you, George but there's no need. I can go up there myself."

"He's not feeling very well, Molly. Might have a fever. You don't want to it to infect yourself too, do you?" Arthur Weasley blurted out as Molly studied his eyes which had started to shift rapidly.

"Nonsense! I'm his mother. I should be the one to take care of him." Molly said, using her tone of voice which meant she had made up her mind. "Now, where's my wand?" Molly said as she frantically felt around her robes.

"Err… Molly… you took all the wands remember? You placed them in the box" Arthur spoke as Molly groaned in frustration. In addition to having a nice family dinner, Molly had insisted that everyone relinquished their wands as soon as they entered the Burrow. Molly placed all the wands into a box which she always kept in her room for safekeeping even hers. Arthur was the lone exception as he kept his close by in case for emergencies. Molly smiled as she recalled persuading Arthur that this measure was necessary to uphold the peace although it was more due to the fact she did not want any of her family members disapparating or leaving without informing her.

"Ahh, yes. Silly me. Guess I just have to walk up the stairs." Molly said as she left the kitchen. No sooner than she had taken a few steps towards the stairs that she heard a large crash which sounded like a chair toppling over coming from the kitchen.

"It's okay, Mom!" Charlie cried out loud as he stuck his head out on the doorway before Molly could turn back "Percy accidentally tipped my chair over." Molly shook her head at her son's carelessness before making her way up the stairs. Outside, Molly could hear the pipes bend and shake as if something was making its way up to the upper levels of the Burrow. _Must be a gnome or a cat. Probably a very large cat by the sound of it_ Molly thought as she made her up towards Fred's room. Molly knocked hard on the door. At that moment, Molly hear what sounded like a loud bang followed by the sound of Fred wheezing "Just a minute!". After waiting for what seemed like an eternity, Molly grumbled impatiently before pushing the door open.

Fred had his back face to her as the window was cracked wide open, allowing a gust of cold wind to enter the room. The room looked like a mess as clothes were strewn all around the floor and Fred's blankets had been crumpled around his bed, indicating that he indeed had recently slept in it. Molly approached Fred cautiously who again, seemed to be rubbing his left ear.

"Fred, are you feeling better?" Molly asked as Fred turned to face his mother, his usual lopsided cheeky grin plastered on his face.

"Yeah…mum. Just…need to continue …. sleeping." Fred said as he continued to take quick, sharp breaths as if he had just been running.

"What happened here?" Molly said as she walked to the window and looked outside. Not a gnome nor cat were to be seen as the large pipe that extended from the ground floor, past Fred's room to the attic looked undisturbed even though it seemed bent in certain areas. _Probably because we haven't done any maintenance_ Molly thought as she reminded herself to talk to Arthur about it.

"Just…messing about…Mom."

"Well, close the window! You're going to make your cold worse. And when you feel better, do clean up your room!" Molly chided as she turned to face her son. "Why do you look like you are out of breath?"

"Was… trying…to kill…an insect…spider…bug" Fred said as he flashed another grin towards his mother. Molly sighed as she placed a hand on Fred's forehead before leading him to his bed. Fred protested initially but gave in when Molly gave him one of her famous motherly glares. As she tucked Fred into bed, Molly sighed as she kissed him on his forehead.

"Sleep tight, Freddie," Molly said as she cleared about his room and closed the door. For some reason, Molly stood outside the door and waited until she could hear Fred snoring out loud. Satisfied, Molly went down the stairs when again, she heard something crawling down from outside the house.

"What in the world?" Molly said as she went to the kitchen to notice Charlie, Percy, and George missing while the rest of her family stared at her. Arthur nudged his head towards the kitchen door that led to the backyard as Molly made a beeline for it. Walking outside, Molly came across Charlie holding onto Percy on the ground as George laid a few metres away. It seemed like the three of them had been roughhousing outside the house.

"What is going on?" Molly demanded as the rest of the family had now left the table and were staring at the three Weasley boys at the backyard.

"Just a disagreement, Mom. Not to worry!" Charlie said as Percy nodded while glancing warily at George.

"Yeah, Mum!" George said as he gave her a rather familiar, lopsided cheeky grin. "Just messing about, Mum!"

…

"I see," Amanda said as she continued to scribble onto her clipboard while keeping an eye on Molly. "So, what do you make of it?"

Molly let out an angry growl, although it mostly directed at herself rather than Amanda. "Honestly, Amanda, do you think me a fool?"

Amanda looked alarmed at the sight of Molly Weasley's spontaneous behaviour. "I assure you that I do not think that."

"Then why haven't you come to the same conclusion as I have?"

"Who says I haven't?"

"Have you?" Molly replied curtly as she looked suspiciously at Amanda who shrugged her shoulders in response. "If you want me to tell you what I think you're implying, Molly, then that's what I will do."

"Go ahead, then."

Amanda sighed as she looked towards the Weasley's matriarch who had kept her suspicious stare on the young female Healer.

"You think that George has been impersonating Fred whenever you realize Fred has been missing at your weekly dinners. During the first time, you notice how George disappeared when Fred entered the kitchen and only came back when Fred left. Similarly, you suspect that while you were walking up to see Fred, George must have climbed up the pipe to take his place. The rubbing of his left ear is probably due to some product or Glamour charm that made George feel uncomfortable due to the lack of his own."

"YES!" Molly cried out triumphantly as she shook her fist. "You see! I thought I was crazy but it looks like you came to a similar conclusion."

"Just one question, Molly. Couldn't you have told Fred and George apart?"

Molly sighed as she felt a slight pang of guilt throughout her body. "It might seem embarrassing and downright shameful for a mother to admit this but as the years go by and those two started to share similar personalities and behaviours that I found it difficult to tell one from the other. I wished for years to be able to tell the difference and now, in the cruellest of all ironies, I got my wish."

Amanda placed a comforting hand on top of Molly whom grabbed it and squeezed it gratefully.

"However," Molly said as her eyes flashed with glee. "Both of us are wrong!"

"What do you mean?" Amanda asked as she stared at the aging witch with curiosity.

"I needed to be sure, you see, that I wasn't imagining things and so, although we couldn't have a family dinner the next week as many of the children weren't able to come, I hatched a little scheme just this past Sunday to catch all of them together!" Molly said as she recalled with happiness her most recent memory.

…

On the fourth Sunday of every month, Arthur and Molly would host the family dinner outside of their Burrow with more pomp than usual. If anyone of their children had missed the last three dinners, the fourth would be deemed to be their final chance to redeem themselves unless they wished to be exiled, a threat that Molly assured her family she took very seriously. That Sunday, the Weasleys hosted a barbecue as Arthur had acquired a barbecue pit from an array of Muggle objects at his office. Tables were set up, lights were put up and even a wireless radio with both Muggle and wizard music was playing as the Weasley's clan became much livelier than ever.

"Honestly, George, it's called S.P.E.W not SPEW!"

"For the last time, Ginny, Harry's in a meeting with Kingsley! I don't know if he's showing or not!"

"Cauldron bottoms are not a joke, Charlie!"

"All I'm saying is zat 'e looks 'ideous!"

"Everyone!" Molly said as she continued to look around the garden. Just as she suspected, Fred was not in sight and as she thought hard, she didn't recall giving him permission to leave the party for any reason whatsoever. Molly cleared her throat as the din began to quieten. She pulled out a camera from her robes and handed it to Hermione.

"Picture time!" Molly cried as she pulled Arthur by her side. "I want to take two pictures. The first will just be the Weasleys, sorry dear." Molly said while flashing an apologetic grin to Hermione who simply smiled as she held the camera. Molly cleared her throat for the next part of her plan.

"George, I want you by my side this instance!" Molly said as George wandered over to her. Molly grabbed George's hand in a vice-like grip earning a painful protest from George who tried to wriggle out by to no avail. "Charlie, you go grab Fred wherever he is and bring him to me!"

Charlie stared at her before switching his gaze to his father. Molly sneaked a sideways glance at her husband who nodded towards Charlie as her second oldest did a turnaround and went into the house. Molly positioned herself standing next to Arthur as she kept a firm grip on George while Bill and Percy stood next to their father. A hugely protesting Ron and Ginny were forced to sit and hug in front of them as Molly counted the seconds until Fred's arrival.

Molly's eyes widened in surprise when Fred Weasley emerged from the house protesting against taking the picture because of his messy hair while Charlie merely dragged his younger brother in front of the camera. Only when Fred was within her grasp did Molly released George, earning a loud thanks from the twin who was nursing his arm, and grabbed hold of Fred who oddly enough, pulled her into a side hug as he leaned his head on her shoulder. Charlie then stood next to George as Molly looked around at her family who were all bickering amongst themselves and cursing Hermione to take the photograph as soon as possible. As soon as the first picture was taken, Molly took the magical camera from Hermione as she carefully analysed the photo, which had appeared instantaneously. All of her children were there as well as Arthur who was grinning as widely as he could.

"How about a second one with everyone?" Arthur roared as he waved his wand to suspend the camera in mid-air while he set a timer.

Molly could only smile at the scene before her. Ron had pulled Hermione into a hug as Bill and Fleur did the same with baby Victoire in her mother's arms. George wrestled Percy playfully to the ground as Angelina and Lee Jordan starting cheering them on. Charlie was playing with Fred's hair as the latter continued to protest his stay. Arthur was busy setting up the camera while Ginny seemed to be looking around the garden. In fact, the only one missing right now was…

CRACK!

"Sorry, I'm late!" cried a bedraggled Harry who had Apparated in the backyard and whose robes appeared to be crumpled many times over. Ginny gave a squeal as she threw her arms around her boyfriend. Molly stood in front of the camera as she arranged her entire extended family into their sitting and standing positions. Once she was satisfied, Molly and Arthur took to their seats in the centre of the group. Sneaking a last-minute glance at Fred, Molly was happy to see him grinning back at her as he stood by her side along with every single member of the Weasley clan.

"Wait, do we say cheese?" Bill asked as the camera started to countdown.

"How about the Chudley Cannons rock?"

"Or support SPEW?"

"Or Ginny is our queen?"

"Or the thickness of cauldron bottoms is NOT a joke?!"

"How about just family," Molly said as she felt on herself on cloud nine. Her family was safe and growing. Everyone was present and there wasn't a single bad thought entering her head. As everyone continued to hoot, bicker and protest, Molly squeezed her husband's hand as Arthur smiled lovingly at her.

Three! Two! One!

"FAMILY!" roared the entire Weasley family as the bright white flash from the camera temporarily blinded them all.

…

"So, it turns out you were imagining that Fred wasn't there?" Angela said as Molly broke from her trance with a smile still lingering from recalling her happy memory.

"I guess I was," Molly said as she smiled at her Healer. Amanda smiled as she raised her hand to look at her wristwatch. Their session was almost over.

"Well, Molly, I would love to continue this discussion with you but as for now, I must conclude our session as I do have other patients to see. Please do keep me updated should you have any other issues, thoughts or queries. I will give you my analysis on your state of mind by owl post to your husband. It should arrive before the weekends."

"Thank you, Amanda," Molly said as she gave the young healer a surprising hug. Amanda was slightly taken aback for a moment before embracing the old witch. Molly straightened her robes and bide her goodbyes, glad to be out of the uncomfortable, white room.

Amanda wiped a tear that had somehow escaped Mrs. Weasley's attention as she stared at the Weasley matriarch walking down towards the end of the corridor, looking for her husband. Pulling herself together, Amanda exited the room and into the same corridor. She walked in the opposite direction from Mrs. Weasley. As she turned the corner, Amanda looked around the corridor before entering a small room and quickly whispering a Locking charm on the door. Turning around, Amanda soon became blinded by the sea of mostly crimson hair in the room.

"I've cast the Silencing Charms. No one can hear us." Arthur said as Amanda scanned the room to see every member of the Weasley clan staring back at her with forlorn faces. From a tearful Ginny being comforted by Harry to a silent Bill as Fleur patted him on his back, the room was filled with an atmosphere of melancholy and dread. Every member of the Weasley family was now present in this room with two very noticeable exceptions, one of whom would never come back.

"How is she, Amanda?" Arthur said as he stared at the young Healer who gave him a sad smile in return while shaking her head.

"Molly is still under the delusion that Fred is still alive. Although there have been breaks in her memory where she notices his absence, her perceived memory of what happened to Fred at the Battle of Hogwarts has unfortunately blocked her from the truth."

"Could we just tell her?" Ron asked as Hermione wrapped her arms tighter around him.

"Not for now, no. She might relapse again as she did." Amanda said as soft cries were heard all around the room.

"Mum was really bad, Ron," Percy said as everyone looked towards him. "I've been staying with her ever since the war ended and she started to deteriorate badly. Mum would spend nights crying on Fred's bed, she would walk around the house cleaning the same spot over and over again, she would spend hours looking at his pictures and staring at the clock waiting for Fred's hand to move until dad was forced to remove it from the wall. It's only recently that Mom has somehow fallen into this denial that Fred is still alive."

Percy's last words lingered around the room like a bad smell that refused to go away. Arthur placed a reassuring hand on George's shoulder as his son tried his best to suppress his tears. Thinking it was time for them to be focused again, Arthur cleared his throat.

"Okay, so let's go back to the schedule. Whose turn will it be this weekend?"

"Speaking of the schedule," Harry said as he gave a grateful nod towards Amanda. "Thank you for covering for me last Sunday. I didn't realize how long Kingsley meeting would take."

"Not a problem, Harry," Amanda said as she beamed at him. "Any way that I can help, I will do it for Molly. It also gives me a chance to observe her outside the hospital."

"It's my turn, Dad. I can fake a last-minute Curse Breaker meeting." Bill said as Arthur pulled out a parchment from his robes and started to write Bill's name down. "Although can we like help George to improvise on his fake ear product."

"Yeah, it gave me such an itch the last time I used it!" Ron exclaimed.

"Me too!" Charlie added as George flashed a wicked grin at his brothers.

"Complain once more and I add my toenails to the potion instead of my hair!" George cried.

"Like that would make it better! Still tastes like essence of George! Disgusting!" Ginny retorted as the entire group broke out in laughter.

"Amanda, would it be better if whoever is being Fred just sat through the entire dinner?" Hermione asked as soon as the group quietened down. Amanda shook her head.

"No, what you are doing is fine. I'm all for allowing Molly to notice Fred so as to prevent a relapse but prolonged interaction with her late son would only encourage the denial further to the point it may be extremely difficult, not to mention, dangerous for her. Don't forget that this is only a temporary solution as we slowly get her to acclimate herself back to reality." Some of the Weasley members gave each other furtive looks but everyone nodded in agreement at Amanda's assessment.

"Speaking of my wife, Molly's probably getting impatient right about now," Arthur said as he walked towards the door. "Remember, she can't see any of you so be careful not to run into us." With that, Arthur exited the room and into the corridor.

….

"Arthur, where have you been?" Molly said impatiently as she tapped her foot. "You've kept me waiting for some time."

"Sorry, my dear," Arthur said as he landed a peck on his wife's cheek. "Just met with some old friends. Lost track of time."

"Well, let's go home, shall we? I can't stand being in this place a minute longer." Molly said as she walked towards the elevator with her husband in hand. As soon as they were outside, Arthur and Molly found a safe place to Apparate themselves back to the Burrow.

As Molly walked in the garden towards her front door, a sudden thought occurred to her. Clapping her hands, she pulled her husband closer towards her.

"Oh, Arthur, I just had a lovely idea. Is my birthday coming within the next two weeks?"

"Why, yes, it is," Arthur said as he beamed down at his wife.

"Well, I was thinking, instead of us waiting until the last Sunday of the month, let's celebrate my birthday in a fortnight with an outside party. We should invite everyone, not just our family. We can have party decorations and tables and I spend time making food and drinks for everyone!"

"That sounds lovely, Molly!"

"Oh but no white streamers or decorations of any kind. Blue, red, green any colour but white. Recently, it starting to bother me."

"Of course, dear!"

"And we can invite Amanda! Think of it. She's never met Charlie before and she's a lovely girl. She says she's spoken for but I supposed we can always pull that old Weasley charm on her and see how everything goes. Just think about it, Arthur. Everyone present with our family and our friends all together. Just as it should be."

For some reason, Arthur had stopped in his tracks just before their doorstep. Turning to his wife, Molly noticed that her husband was looking at her with a bittersweet smile on his face.

"Are you all alright, Arthur?" Molly said as she placed her hand onto his cheek. Arthur turned his face so as to kiss her hand while he held it in place.

"I just…I just love you so much, Mollywobbles" Arthur exclaimed as he pulled her into a tight hug. Yet Molly was no longer concerned about her husband as her mind was busy wondering two things, how she would try to matchmake Amanda with her Charlie and why the top of her head was suddenly becoming very wet.

 **THE END**


End file.
